


Overworked and Underpaid

by cordeliadelayne



Category: Primeval, Spooks | MI-5
Genre: Crossover, Gen, being looked after
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-22
Updated: 2015-12-22
Packaged: 2018-05-08 11:10:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5494997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cordeliadelayne/pseuds/cordeliadelayne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Connor is assigned to work with MI5 and ends up overworking himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Overworked and Underpaid

**Author's Note:**

  * For [fififolle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fififolle/gifts).



> Written as a Christmas present for the lovely fififolle who gave the prompt “Connor and Tariq working together, get super tired and have to be looked after.” 
> 
> All you need to know about _Spooks_ is that it's about MI5. All you need to know about _Primeval_ is that it involves rips in time and dinosaurs. Neither of which appear here.

On the day that Connor left for his temporary new assignment Lester had pulled him to one side and said only five words, “don't you dare embarrass me”. Connor had started to smirk and then drastically changed his expression as he realised that Lester was deadly serious. And it was that warning that echoed through his head as he followed his new partner around Thames House, headquarters of MI5 and one of the top five amazing places on the planet (to Connor's 10 year old self at least).

It was hard to take everything in over the “oh my god, I'm working with MI5, does that get me a licence to kill,” buzzing in his head. But he tried to concentrate, for Lester's sake if nothing else and with a deep intake of breath he began to re-focus on Tariq's tour, and especially the security procedures he would have to go through every morning and night.

Nothing was to be taken out of the building. Everything brought in had to be vetted. His pass gave him access only to the main hub of Section D and the canteen, everything else was strictly off limits.

“I _have_ signed the Official Secrets Act,” Connor had interrupted.

Tariq had just shrugged. “Who hasn't?”

After that Connor had remained quiet, wanting to make Lester and the others proud.

“And this is your desk,” Tariq said, bringing Connor's thoughts back to the present. “I've set up all the protocols you need.” He pointed to a desk just behind Connor's. “That's mine.”

Connor nodded and sat down. He didn’t need to be some sort of super spy to know that his new desk allowed Tariq to keep an eye on him if he tried to look at anything non-anomaly related. Like say, the location of the UK's UFO research centre.

“So,” Connor said. “What's next?”

Tariq grinned at him. “Now we use the might of Her Majesty's Intelligence Service to find some dinosaur smugglers.”

Connor bounced on his toes. “Sounds good.”

Connor's mission, which he'd chosen to accept, was to help MI5 track down a ring of smugglers who'd been using anomalies as their personal treasure troves. They'd go through an anomaly, kill what they could, and bring back the body parts to sell, mostly on the Chinese markets. So far they hadn't been stupid enough to bring a live animal through, but Cutter only thought it was a matter of time before someone wanted an exotic pet to add to their collection.

Before the ARC Connor might have thought that no one could be that stupid; now he knew better.

* * * * *

Connor blinked wearily and stared at the computer monitor. All the data seemed to be pouring off the bottom of the screen and landing in a pool around the keyboard. He blinked again and everything slid back to normal.

Someone put a steaming mug of tea next to his desk and he almost yelped. As it was he jerked, pushed his chair back and nearly slammed into the computer station behind him.

“Graceful as always,” a familiar voice commented.

Connor looked up and his mouth dropped open.

“Captain Ryan? What are you doing here?”

Ryan was obviously fighting very hard to keep a straight face. “You missed your check-in. Lester was worried. Or what passes for worried, anyway.”

Connor frowned. They'd arranged that he would call with an update every five hours. Surely he hadn't...He cheeked the time on his computer and groaned.

“How...”

“How did you not notice you'd worked through till 2am?” Ryan asked. “God only knows.”

Ryan sat down at the empty desk next to Connor. It was then that Connor noticed the room was empty except for two guards near the doors.

“Tariq?” he asked.

“Fetching breakfast. Or dinner. Said he didn't want to leave you alone, or he'd have gone earlier.”

“Oh,” Connor said in a very small voice. “Guess I got a bit distracted.”

“Little bit, yeah,” Ryan agreed. He was grinning outright now and Connor ducked his head, embarrassed by the attention. He'd deny it till his dying day but Connor had always admired Captain Ryan, he was everything that he himself was not.

A few seconds of awkward silence were filled by Connor drinking down his tea. It was still hot enough to burn his tongue but he carried on drinking it anyway.

“Made any progress?”

Connor nodded. “Some. I think we've...” He tried, and failed, to stifle a yawn. “We've got a good, good um, starting point.”

Connor shook his head, rubbed at his eyes and tried to roll his shoulders, all with the half empty mug of tea in his hand. With a long-suffering sigh Ryan removed the mug from his grasp.

“All right,” he said, “sleep it is.”

“Whuh?” Connor asked eloquently.

“I'm taking you to bed.”

Connor blinked, trying to understand. Instead of engaging him in conversation though Ryan just hefted him out of his chair and proceeded to half drag, half carry him out of the room.

“The only reason I haven't thrown you over my shoulder is because Lester would kill us if anyone at MI5 saw that.”

Connor just about managed to nod. That would be embarrassing. Not that this was really any better, but at least there was no one around to see.

“Where are we going?”

“Sleep pods,” Ryan said. “No point taking you home now. I'll stay and keep an eye on you.”

“Safest place in the world,” Connor mumbled.

Ryan snorted. “Hardly.”

Rather than think too hard about what Ryan meant, Connor refocused on putting one foot in front of the other. Ordinarily a late night session wouldn’t have effected him quite so badly, but perhaps he _had_ got a tad overexcited about working with MI5.

Which reminded him...”Where's Tariq?”

“Hmm?” Ryan asked. He had propped Connor momentarily up against a wall while he tried to decide whether they should be going left or right.

“Tariq. Shouldn't he be back -” _yawn_ “by now?”

Ryan gabbed Connor again and started to get then moving, having decided that left was the way to go. And luckily so, as they hadn’t gone far when they found Tariq sitting on a chair in an otherwise empty corridor, food container dangling precariously from his hand.

“Oh for...” Ryan muttered. “Tariq? TARIQ!”

Tariq leaped from his chair as if he'd been electrocuted, scattering the lukewarm food all over the floor. Ryan started considering a career change.

“Oh, hey, I – uh – just thought I'd close my eyes for a uh -”

“I'm taking Connor to the sleep pods,” Ryan said, brooking no argument. “You're coming with us.”

Tariq looked around at the mess on the floor and then at Ryan. Connor would have laughed if Ryan hadn't chosen that moment to drag him into the nearest lift. Tariq quickly followed.

The sleep pods were on the third floor, essentially quiet rooms with bunk beds, a sofa and table and a small fridge that was kept stocked with water and a few snack items. Connor was already half planning on requesting the same set-up at the ARC, because they looked glorious. And so soft...

It was only when he heard Ryan's laugh that he realised he had said that out loud. And that somehow Ryan had managed to manoeuvre him onto the bed and had him lying on his back with his shoes off before he'd even realised what was happening.

“Sorry,” Connor said, around another big yawn.

“I'm not tucking you in,” Ryan said, though he was smiling as he said it.

With a great deal of effort Connor twisted himself under the covers while Ryan sorted Tariq out.

“Right,” Ryan said. “A good seven hours sleep and then you can both get back to work.”

Connor turned over on his side and blinked in surprise. “You're staying here?”

“I told you I would,” Ryan replied. He turned off the main light and sank down into the comfy chair in the corner. Connor watched him pull out a tablet and start to read. “Sleep”, he whispered after a minute.

Connor smiled to himself and then turned to face the wall so the light from Ryan's tablet wouldn't disturb him. If his 10 year old self could see him now he'd never believe it. Sleeping in MI5's headquarters with an actual soldier watching over him.

Best day ever.


End file.
